Mixing Up Your Spinning Exercises

Spending hours on a spin bike can get quite tedious without a different routine to mix up things. Indoor cycling training has been said to be more difficult than outdoor cycling because you have the ability to customize each workout by adding resistance. Make your next spin workout super productive and fun by injecting it with different drills and variations.

Before starting any workout, it’s important to stretch thoroughly. If you have any health issues or have not engaged in any sort of exercise regimen for an extended period of time, you should speak with your doctor before beginning any rigorous routines.

Endurance Workout

You can increase your aerobic capability and improve efficiency on a spin bike by doing an endurance workout.

Begin riding easy at about 60 rotations per minute (rpm) for six minutes to warm up.

Gradually increase to 70 to 80 rpm with a rate of perceived exertion around 8/10.

Then do four one minute fast pedaling intervals. Do these with as high of a cadence as possible, and keep it in a low gear. Aim to get your rate of perceived exertion to a 5/10.

Recover for two minutes of easy spinning.

Follow the full set with five minutes of easy spinning.

For the final set, do 10-12 intervals where you switch between 30 seconds of hard spinning followed by 30 seconds of easy spinning. During the hard sections, continue to keep the cadence as high as possible and aim to reach a 9/10 on rate of perceived exertion.

End with 10 minutes of easy pedaling.

Climbing Hills

If you’re looking for a way to train for the hills, climbing bursts on a spinning bike are an effective method.

After a 10 minute warmup, ride for about 10 minutes at a difficulty that is about an 8/10 in perceived exertion.

Every two minutes, stand up and do 12-15 complete strokes at your best effort.

Follow this set with 10 minutes of easy spinning.

Repeat three times to complete the workout.

Single Leg Drill

Athletes quite often have one leg that is stronger than the other. A spin bike is a solid way to combat this and get both legs on equal pedaling. For this workout, you need a chair or stool directly next to the bike.

Begin by resting your right foot on the chair and pedal with your left foot.

Maintain smooth pedal strokes at 90 rpm for 30 seconds, then switch to your right foot.

Over time, aim to build up to four minutes of continuous pedaling on each leg.

If it is possible to even devote just 20 to 30 minutes a day to indoor cycling, the benefits can be enormous! Before too long, you will easily find yourself keeping up with the seasoned cyclists at your gym!

Jackie

I'm a fitness nut. I know what you're thinking, one of these people who has never been fat a day in her life, and can eat whatever she wants. The truth is I struggled with my weight growing up and lived in a household where everything seemed to be fried. Once I got away from home I realized I had the choice to eat and exercise how I wanted. I've gained a lot of insight into working as a personal trainer, and feel I can relate to others that were in my situation. I think if I can do it then you can to, and if you want to start kicking butt then hop on board and lets get started.